Live Sound
Computer

What
is a Live Sound Computer?

Since
Digital Audio Workstation software has become readily available and
widely used in the music recording industry many people wonder if it is
possible to do live sound reinforcement mixing on a computer. Some have
tried using their DAW software to mix sound. The requirements for
realtime live audio and studio work are different and DAW software is
optimized for use in the studio.

Now you
can have a virtual live mixing console on your computer that rivals the
digital
mixing consoles that have been on the scene for several years. Digital
consoles are
becoming more prevalent in live sound production as time passes. There
are many advantages to the digital hardware. The boards incorporate
digital signal processing that eliminates much of the traditional
outboard gear. Each channel has dynamic processing in the form of
compression and gate. Effects processors are incorporated into the
boards or standard external processors can be used in most cases. The
modern
digital mixing console provides the complete live mixing environment
onboard.

The heart of any digital mixing system is a dedicated
computer. The hardware consoles incorporate control surfaces that
emulate the controls of an analog console. They often include touch
screens that add to the control system.

The Software Audio
Console

There
is now a software available for a Windows PC that gives you the
functionality of the big hardware consoles in a virtual environment.
The studio business has used this model for many years. Now it is
available to the live sound reinforcement community. The virtual
console gives you
the features of the hardware consoles without the hardware. While
control surfaces can be interfaced with the software for special
effects they are not
necessary for most live audio mixing functions.

The software package has been developed by experienced
live sound engineers for live sound engineers. The navigation is set up
to get to any part of the virtual console with only a couple of clicks
or by keyboard commands.
The User Interface is set up to look like a physical console, with
channel strips, aux send and return modules, and output modules.

Through
the magic of code the channels can be reordered and sessions can be
saved and recalled. You can save a mix that you are using in a
particular venue and the next time that you work that room you can
start exactly where you left off the last time that you played the room.

The
code base for the SAC software is written in assembly language. Because
of this it is very responsive and it is conservative of resources.
Assembly language programming bypasses much of the Windows environment.

Mixer In A Box is my website that is dedicated to this
software and the virtual live sound mixing experience. There is more
information about this Live Audio Workstation software there as well as links to the developer's site.
Please visit Mixer
In A Box.